More young people say rising bills now stopping them moving out | UK News

Leoni Clancey and her boyfriend had saved for years to be able to move out of their parents’ homes and into their first rental property together.

But nine months later all their savings had disappeared on living costs and they both moved back home. The 21-year-old is now sharing a bedroom with her 10-year-old sister.

Leoni is one of a growing number of young people who now say it is the rising cost of running a home that means they can’t afford to buy or rent their own place, industry experts warn.

Nine out of 10 young adults living with parents in the UK would face costs of nearly half their income if they moved out, figures from property and finance firm the Skipton Group suggest.

While she gets on well with her mum and her sister Leoni says “it just doesn’t feel like it’s my place.”

“It’s not great in terms of not being able to see my partner, not having the life that we had, having to take that massive step back from the independence that I had. I just don’t think it’s fair.”

But she felt she had no choice: “Being able to afford running a home, it’s just insane,” she says.

“When I first moved in I did have some savings ready, by the time we’d moved out they’d gone.”

“I’d say the main problems were the utilities, council tax, and rent,” she says.

In 2011, there were 4.2m adults living with parents while not in education or caring for a relative. By 2021 that figure had risen to 4.9m, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Skipton Group commissioned research for its biannual Home Affordability Index, compiled by Oxford Economics.

It uses Office for National Statistics and house price data alongside a survey of 2,000 adults who are living with their parents to help understand why.

The data shared exclusively with the suggested nearly 98% of adults living with their parents could not afford to pay what the average first-time buyer pays for a house in their area.

Even if they could afford a deposit, nine in 10 would face mortgage or rent payments, council tax, utility bills, insurance and maintenance costs that would use up nearly half of their income. If they bought a flat, that figure falls to eight in 10.

These calculations are based on one person buying alone and in the same local authority as their parents.

Stuart Haire, chief executive of the Skipton Group, says many young people move out nearby to stay close to their workplaces and friendship networks.

“My heart goes out to them. I think it’s a lost opportunity, and one that we really need to address,” he says.

The report also highlights the financial impact for parents, as there can be a significant loss of income if parents can’t move to a smaller property because older children are still living at home.

The trade body representing estate agents – Propertymark – said that rising living costs are “becoming financially testing for many people, especially those working out their finances to step onto the housing ladder for the first time.”

It said society needed to “recognise that the costs associated with the first few years of home ownership come at a greater cost compared to those who run an existing home.”

This group are facing the same jumps in utility, insurance, mortgage, rent and maintenance costs, but trying to cover them on significantly lower wages.

Right now, Leoni says she and her boyfriend will be living at home for the foreseeable future. They are saving again – but this time for a deposit to buy their own place – as well as enough to cover costs.

“I’m saving for the money that I’ll need to do the place up. I’m saving for furniture. I’m saving for bills, and I’m saving for an emergency fund,” she says.

Dan Wilson Craw, deputy chief executive, of Generation Rent, says while many people would enjoy living with parents a lack of housing options can make starting a career or a relationship more difficult.

“To fix this we need to build more social homes to allow people on lower incomes to fly the nest, and homes of all kinds in the places where jobs are being created,” he says.

The government says increasing the minimum wage is helping, but that “a generation of young people are locked out of homeownership… we’re turning this crisis around by… building the 1.5 million homes this country needs.”

• Consider buying with a sibling or friend rather than just a partner.
• Some lenders have products that mean you don’t pay anything on your mortgage for the first couple of months to help you over the rest of your moving costs.
• If you open a Lifetime ISA before you’re 40, you can use it to save for a deposit. The government will add a 25% bonus to your savings, up to a maximum of £1,000 per year.
• Have a look at shared ownership. You don’t have to share with anyone. Instead, it means you buy a share of the property and pay rent to a landlord on the rest.
• In Wales, you may qualify for a loan to help with the cost of a new-build home if you’re a first-time buyer